The right thing to do (2)
by xaltanat.daimaou
Summary: Shura's sister learns about the battle of the Sanctuary. She is desperate, but she must face a trial before leaving for Greece. She will learn that her brother and Camus died and now she will try to take revenge on the Bronze Saints. Will she do it?


THE RIGHT THING TO DO

(Part 2)

"Did you hear bout the battle at the Sanctuary? " One of the men said. They walked by in the afternoon of a quiet day. A woman was listening to them from up a tree, hidden by the foliage.

"The Pope was killed. Who would have thought he was a traitor to Athena!" the man went on.

"Yeah, but the incredible thing was those five Bronze Saints fighting and defeating the twelve Gold Saints! Unbelievable!" said the other in amazement.

"I had wished to meet a real Gold Saint one day, but they were all killed like flies, even when they were the strongest." His partner confessed.

"Not all of them died. Six of them are still guarding the Temples in Greece." The other corrected.

Still talking, they walked away until their voices were no longer hearable to her.

"A mortal battle at the Sanctuary!" she gasped "It can't be! The Gold Saints defeated!"

Swift as the blink of an eye, she was gone.

"Master" Eienai presented herself bowing her head respectfully before her mentor. "I ask for your permit to make a trip to Greece. I will be back as soon as I can."

"This is because of the battle at the Sanctuary, right?" he asked. He was a middle-aged man with no armor. He had dedicated his life to train Saints, but he had never wanted to take armor for himself. "You are worried about your brother."

She kept silence. That man knew her better that anyone. Maybe even better that her brother, whom she hadn't seen in almost eight years; since that bittersweet goodbye.

Her Master had been strict to her, and her condition as a woman hadn't stopped him from training her as hard as any of his other male disciples. One would think he didn't care to break her bones, but on the contrary, he had always been aware of the young woman's feelings. He had been very understanding and had almost assumed the role of a father towards her.

He knew well enough that Eienai would never forget her brother, Shura. He also knew that the blood ties would be painfully cut by the sword of battle sooner or later.

The dreaded moment had come.

"It is not a good idea to go. You will find too much pain. I'm sure you haven't been able to feel your brother's cosmos anymore."

He was right. Days before, she had felt her heart crushing with sorrow and she didn't know why.

She had a dream in which her brother flew to the starry heavens, away from her, smiling sadly at her. She had woken up crying.

"I know how important this is for you, so I will not stand in your way. It is your decision, Eienai. You have the right to chose and to find your own path."

He looked at her.

Eienai was wearing the obligatory mask for women, but she could feel her Master's eyes looking into hers thru it.

"I have to go see if nothing has happened to my brother." She said at last.

Her Master closed his eyes and sighed.

"In that case, I have a favor to ask of you before your departure. You must enter the final competitions and descend to Moloch's Belly."

Eienai reacted as if her mentor had suddenly pierced her chest with a knife. "Moloch's Belly!" she exclaimed bewildered. "Master! I would never dare! What lies buried there is not destined to me!"

"Do not speak like a frightened child!" He reprimanded sternly. "The last competitions will take place tomorrow. If you win and survive Moloch's Belly, what lies there will be rightfully yours. If it's not your destiny, you won't be able to come back. Do not judge destiny, but let destiny judge you."

Feeling the wild torrent of emotions unleashing inside her, she excused herself from her Master's presence.

Moloch's Belly was a hollow mountain inside which a lake of molten lava bubbled. The descending tunnel was very steep, long and narrow. One had to carefully secure footing or risked sliding down to a certain death. If one made it to the lava lake, there were still the toxic vapors, the lava and the incredible heat. In the lake's center, was a huge stone that was the seal of the Armor of Solarium.

There was a peculiar story about the Cloth of Solarium. Her Master had told his pupils that when the armors where forged; Solarium and Cerberus were not to be considered at all.

But Athena gave orders to the forgers to make them anyway, so there would be eighty-eight saints under her command. The Cloth of Cerberus was made of Silver, but the maker of Solarium had already started the armor as a Bronze Cloth. Then he was forced to finish it as a Silver Cloth. In order to merge the metals, star dust and blood perfectly, the smith had to forge the Armor under great temperatures, making Solarium especially resistant to fire and heat.

"So, that is why I was sent here. Because my Cosmos of fire" she thought. "I will meet my destiny, Master."

Still, surviving Moloch's Belly was a dreaded test.

Eienai decided to take a good night's rest. The competitions were the last of her worries, so she started to mentally prepare to descend into the bowels of the mountain and pry the Armor from them. If she made it, she would finally become a Silver Lady Saint… or die trying.

The combats were exhausting. All her partners in training fought hard, regardless of the fact that they had grown together for eight long years. Other fighters also competed for the right to the armor, under the stern gaze of their Masters.

In the final match, Eienai faced her most terrible opponent: her best friend, Galias.

Galias had always defeated her in training; he was very strong and skilled. Eienai was very fond of him and felt incapable of lifting her fists against him and take away his dream of winning the armor and becoming a Saint.

He was the first to attack and Eienai only defended herself.

As always, she soon fell under Galias' powerful attacks, which came with no restraint this time. But Galias refused to deal the final blow to win the match.

"You are insulting me, Eienai" he said angrily. "I know you don't want to fight me, but it hurts me to defeat you like this. You haven't even tried to hit me once!"

The woman managed to stand up, her whole body ached from her friend's powerful blows.

"All our training will be in vain if you don't fight against me with all your power. Give me a righteous victory or an honorable defeat. We both deserve a fair fight." He told her.

Eienai thought of her brother and Camus. Galias was right. She would demonstrate what she was worth for them and she wouldn't offend her friend giving him a false victory.

"I should be proud" – she thought – "and make my brother and Camus proud of me. After all, my brother is a Gold Saint. The potential of a Gold Saint runs in my veins, too!"

They burned their cosmos and renewed the fight. This time Eienai sent Galias flying away with a terrible blow he was unable to block. The fiery cosmos she unleashed left a trail of fire over the rocky ground, tracing the path of her victory.

Her Master smiled proudly.

But she had yet to undergo the real trial: Moloch's Belly.

The entrance was both simple and sinister. The mountain wasn't very tall, but she wasn't going to climb it.

The hole at its base was just big enough for her to crawl in. After that, she would have to slide along the steep tunnel until she reached the lava lake.

With her Master's permission, the trial started. Eienai chose to slide into the tunnel feet first, face down, so she wouldn't fall head first into the lava, if she lost a step.

She went down slowly, holding tightly to the rocks that protruded along the dark tunnel. After a long, long while, she felt the heat rising and could smell the sulphurous gases. The heat soon was unbearable. She started feeling dizzy and the sweat made her eyes sting.

Her strained legs didn't help her when she stepped on a loose stone and started to slide down with no control, towards certain death.

She left the skin of her palms along the tunnel trying to stop her fall. At last she was able to grab a secure stone at the end of the tunnel. The impulse almost sent her into the lava lake below. Her legs dangled down and she could feel the scalding vapors.

"I did right coming in feet first. If I had done otherwise, I would be swimming in lava by now!"

She looked down looking for secure step with her foot. She found a precarious step that was offered by a flat rock just below the tunnel's exit. She looked at the bubbling lake and found that she had to stand on the rock below and then make a very precise jump three meters ahead to land on a narrow strip of stone that made an isle in the very center of the magma.

She slid and dropped down to the flat rock and she almost fell backwards. She was able to regain her balance and hugged the stone wall as best as she could. The hot surface threatened to scald her like a hot iron and she lifted her palms, for she had scrapped her skin off and the heat stung her painfully.

Her hands were being quickly covered with ugly scars of drying blood mixed with dirt. The heat itched and hurt specially in all the scrapes and bruises she got while sliding down the tunnel.

The toxic vapors kept dizzying her. She calculated her leap and closed her eyes. A blurred vision was of little help.

She had developed explosive power in her muscles during her training, but she was weakening quickly. She barely made the jump.

She fell to her knees. Her eyes were now frosted window panes; she could barely see that at the other end of the long stone was another one that protruded up.

The rock was flat on top and smooth. "Like a tombstone" she thought. The bubbling lava threatened to burn her and the vapors were taking their toll. It burned even to breathe and she was swimming in her own sweat, that vaporized when it fell on the stone. Her sweat was so much she thought she would dehydrate in the next five minutes. She walked slowly, caring not to faint and fall into the lava.

Before her, engraved in the stone, was the emblem of fire, represented as a spiraling star.

"The Cloth must be inside the stone!" Eienai gave a step back. Dizzy, she started to make her power rise, readying her attempt to split the rock. She felt as if even her soul would evaporate.

"I must be prepared" she told herself "when I break this stone the lava could spray at me."

Her energy rose to the limit, she had to burn her cosmos to the point of evaporating the lava itself.

"Shura! Camus! Master! Galias! I will not disappoint you!"

Ignoring the pain of closing her fists, she focused all her strength, her will, her cosmos and her life in one powerful blow against the sign in the stone. She roared more than yelled, when she discharged all her power and her heart on one blow.

The rock split and exploded. The pieces of rock caught fire as they flew upwards. Then, the lava spurted like a fountain and Eienai pushed her power to make a barrier around her. If the lava fell on her, she would die. But inside the fiery fountain, a blinding white light split the lava into two spraying canons without touching her. The light broke into pieces and she felt herself being enveloped by something cool.

"The Cloth of Solarium!"

The Cloth had accepted her and was now protecting her from the heat and the lava. She had expected the metal to burn her, but it was cool like spring breeze and made her feel light.

When the rock she was standing on cracked and started sinking, she tried to go back to the tunnel, but everything was quickly being swallowed by the magma. The roof was collapsing. Huge rocks fell into the lake, splashing deadly liquid.

There was no way for her to reach the tunnel. Looking around frantically, she saw a cave's entrance and ran for it. It could be her only chance to escape alive. The Cloth now protected her from the fire and the heat.

She leapt and made it into the passage just seconds before more falling rocks blocked the entrance leaving her in total darkness. Not having but one way to go, she walked feeling her way along the stone wall. The rising magma filtrated and started to fill the passage as well.

She squeezed herself along as fast as she could, the lava after her, claiming to have returned what she had taken by force. The passage narrowed even more and finally she was unable to go further. The lava kept creeping up, filling in all cracks and pooling, threatening to reach her and swallow her little by little.

She was scared, tired and felt weak. "I cannot die here, trapped like a rat." She whispered into the darkness. "I still have to go to my brother!"

Gathering her remaining power, she prepared again.

"No stupid mountain is going to stop me!" she decided fiercely. Her power shone around her and she screamed as she let it go.

Seeing the side of the mountain exploding and the mass of rock collapsing into itself, the warriors in the area knew the life of a future Saint had been taken by Moloch, and the Cloth was probably lost forever. But the Master and Galias hurried towards the explosion.

Eienai shielded her sore eyes before the sudden sunlight with a bloody hand.

Eienai breathed in the fresh air. It never felt so good. She advanced wearily, taking each step with care, for she felt that if she fell, she would't get up again.

"Hey, what took you so long?" Galias asked with a big smile. He had his arm in a sling; result from his battle with her.

She was exhausted. Her Master took her arm, passing it over his shoulders so she would rest her weight on him. Then he secured her by the waist and guided her down the mountain.

Behind them, Moloch was a defeated, collapsed pile of smoking boulders.

Eienai had breathed in more toxic vapors that she thought. Her Master made her rest for another two days before letting her go to Athena's Sanctuary in Greece. He also cleaned and bandaged her hands himself.

"Now you are a Silver Lady Saint." Her Master said "I am very proud of you and always will."

When Eienai departed, he and Galias watched her go until she was lost in the distance.

The woman's heart was split in two. On one hand, she had a mortal concern about her brother and her beloved Camus. On the other, she was bursting with pride and happiness, as she carried the metal box that contained her Cloth; the sign that honored her as a Saint.

"Now I'm a Saint like Shura and Camus" she kept thinking. "I could be always near them without causing them any trouble."

But this only led her to think that, even if it were possible for her to be always near the Shrines, it would be useless if Shura and Camus were no longer there.

"Please, protect my brother and Camus!" she begged to the Heavens "Don't let them die!"

Mu of Aries was the first Gold Saint to see her.

He sat at the entrance of his Shrine, watching the beautiful sunset. He stood up and prepared to fight as he saw a Saint coming towards him.

He knew it was a Saint, because the person carried his armor in a box on his back.

But he couldn't tell if it was friend of foe. As the unknown Saint came closer, Mu noticed it was not a man, but a Lady Saint.

"A Lady Saint?" he thought "her cosmos feels vaguely familiar. Who could she be?"

She took the steps that led her to the Aries Shrine. Mu came and stood on her way.

"Tell me what you seek, woman" he said.

"Mu!" she exclaimed and put the box on the floor "Mu, don't you remember me?"

He looked at her disdainfully.

"I'm sorry, sometimes I forget I have to wear this silly mask." She laughed "Last time we met, you helped me to reach the Capricorn Shrine."

It was then that the Aries Saint recognized her. Her voice, her jet-black hair, her laughter…

"Eienai! Is that you?" he asked, his eyes wide in surprise.

"Yes, Mu! It's me! I'm the Silver Lady Saint of Solarium now!" she boasted proudly.

"That is a very nice surprise! He smiled, but then his face turned somber.

"I think I know why you have come. I have no doubt that news from the battle have reached all the corners of the world."

Eienai nodded and kept silence.

Mu lowered her head sadly and closed his magenta eyes.

"Tell me that Shura and Camus are fine." She said, still hopeful.

He didn't say anything, just lifted his sorrowful gaze at her.

Anguish threatened to choke her heart when she saw the truth in the Gold Saint's clear, gentle eyes.

"I'm sorry, Eienai." He said at last.

Her tears streamed under her mask, dripping from her chin.

"I'm truly sorry." He said again, his grief showing in his face.

She was demolished by the news. Her knees gave out, Mu quickly catched her before she fell and helped her sit down on the stone steps. Then he sat next to her.

"I have no words that could help ease a pain as deep as yours." He said softly.

She couldn't reply. Her only sound was her choking sobs.

Mu put his arm around her and she leaned to him, crying.

The woman's grief was making the Gold Saint's heart feel crushed by pain as well. He could do nothing to soothe her, so he only held her in silence.

"Who killed them?" she asked in a low voice as soon as she was able to speak.

"What do you mean?" he inquired. He could feel a great cosmos flowing inside her body, like lava in a volcano.

"Who is responsible for my brother's and Camus' deaths?" she asked again, a sudden anger rising inside her.

"I will not tell you, Eienai. This terrible news caused you a great shock and I don't want you to do something stupid, following your rage and pain."

"Tell me, Mu! Who murdered the two people I loved most in the world!" She shouted wildly. She stood swiftly, her bandaged fists trembling. She held them so tight, they started bleeding again.

He stood up as well and replied as calmly as he could. "You have to understand that they died fighting with honor, not murdered. They sacrificed their lives voluntarily."

"How could my brother do that and leave me alone in the world?" she shouted back.

"He was probably very sure that you were strong enough to see for yourself. You have the proof next to you." He said looking down at her armor's box. "Shura would have been very proud of you… and Camus too."

"I can't believe that he let somebody defeat him." Her voice was low now, but edged with anger. Her cosmos rose like fire.

"She is very powerful" thought Mu "more than any other Lady Saint. But rage has blinded her."

"If you don't want to tell me who killed them, somebody else will." She said.

Before Mu could stop her, Eienai had taken her armor box and leapt like lightning among the rocks, disappearing.

"Poor little Eienai." He whispered. "I hope your rage doesn't lead you to an untimely death."

"I can't believe it! It can't be as he said!" she repeated over and over. She sat on a rock under the starry Greek sky. "My brother was way too proud to let himself be beaten by a lowly Bronze Saint! And Camus... my beloved Camus! How can I keep on going if nobody is waiting for me?"

She looked to one side and saw the tip of a broken sword blade, forgotten after a fight or training. She took it in her hands and undid the bandages around her wrist.

Then, she put the sharp tip and prepared to cut her veins. That way, all her pain would flow out along with her blood; emptying her heart, making her soul free to go after Shura and Camus.

"No! There is something I have to do before I die." She stopped herself "I have to find those Bronze Saints and make them pay for their crime."

The Bronze Saints fame had extended from the Sanctuary to all the corners of the land after the bloody battle.

Eienai had to do no more than approach a group of lesser soldiers and knock out with a single punch the one who tried to touch her, to have all their attention.

They told her exactly who the Bronze Saints were, where they came from and where would she most likely find them; to save themselves from the rage of the Lady Saint.

"So, they are only five Saints, but I'm after only two of them. My brother's murderer calls himself Dragon Shiryu and the one who killed Camus was Cygnus Hyoga. Those men also said that they are always by Athena's side. That means that if I go to Athena, I will find the Bronze Saints."

So she started her search for the goddess Athena, who was also known by the human name of Saori Kido.

Saori's mansion was impressive and luxurious.

She thought on breaking in by force, but then she reconsidered. That would only lead to all the Saints attacking her at the same time. She didn't care how many they were, but she only wanted to kill two of them.

The most obvious thing to do was to knock on the door and ask about them; so that was what she did.

A tall, bald butler in a black tuxedo opened the door.

"How may I help you?" he asked politely.

"I'm looking for two Saints" she replied "Their names are Shiryu and Hyoga."

"The Bronze Saints? Yes, they were here" he answered "but they departed two days ago."

"Where can I find them?" she inquired.

"I'm sorry; I cannot give you that information. I see that you wear a mask and carry a Cloth. You are a Lady Saint. How do I know you are not an enemy who wants to kill Athena?"

"You don't have to worry about her, I assure you. I'm only looking for those two men"

The butler was unsure about her intentions so she used her 'girly skills' and implored sadly: "Please, sir. I have to find them. It is very important!" she pleaded urgently.

It was not hard to edge her voice with pain. She almost broke in tears again just by thinking about her loved ones.

Her plea surprised the butler. Besides, his heart was not of stone.

"They have gone to face a new enemy" he explained, softened by her distress "they are all headed towards Asgard."

"In Asgard!" she exclaimed "That's at the end of the world!"

She was taken aback by the fact. How was she going to find them in that far away frozen corner of the world?

"Are you all right?" the butler asked when he saw the woman didn't move.

"I have to go" – she said as she turned to leave – "Thank you, good man."

"Wait!" the man called after her "If you need help, maybe the Kido Foundation will be able to do something for you, when Miss Saori returns."

"Nobody can help me" she answered in a low voice. The butler didn't insist. He saw how she turned her way and walked slowly out of the property.

"Who could that girl be?" he wondered. "She was so upset… as if she carried a heavy burden on her shoulders; something that weighs a lot more than that metal box"

It required time and a great effort to reach Asgard, but she was determined to find the Bronze Saints at any cost. Her greater task was now trying to find exactly where they were. After walking an entire day in the snow, cold to her bones, she finally arrived to a village at the feet of a tall, frozen mountain, crowned by a huge castle. She tried luck at the first inn she came across.

Just stepping inside the warm house was a relief. She approached the bear-sized keeper and asked if he had seen some foreigners around.

Neither the inn keeper nor the other people there knew the two men she was looking for, but a woman told her that a foreigner had arrived a not so long ago and that he had been around making questions to the people in the village.

She didn't know his name, but he was blonde and must've come from a sunny place, because his skin was tanned.

Eienai was almost sure that he was one of the men she was looking for.

She went out to the frozen streets and walked around for hours. It was freezing cold, but her anger and determination kept her going.

At last she saw the blond man described to her. He was talking to another man, who nodded or shook his head from time to time. At last, the blond walked away.

She rushed to him and stood in his way.

"Are you one of the Bronze Saints?" she questioned him.

"Why do you want to know? Do you come from the Valhalla Castle?"

"Valhalla? I don't know what you are talking about" she said "Tell me, is your name Shiryu or Hyoga?"

"My name is Hyoga. Who are you?" he asked defensively.

"I'm the Solarium Lady Saint. I'm here to avenge the death of two people that you and your friends murdered."

"Murdered?" he asked, bewildered "I'm not a murderer. You are making a mistake!"

"So you are going to deny that you met Camus of Aquarius or Shura of Capricorn?"

"Master Camus!" Hyoga exclaimed "How do you know him?"

"That is none of your business!" she roared "Confess! You and your friends killed them by treason!"

"You are totally wrong!" he shouted "We would never do something so lowly. Camus was my Master! He gave his life to help me save Athena! Shura did the same for Shiryu!"

"Liar!" Eienai accused "They were Gold Saints at Athena's service! They would never be defeated by someone of the likes of you! Fight with me and I'll prove it to you!"

The box she carried opened and the armor of Solarium assembled itself over Eienai's body. Her cosmos shone like fire.

"Wait, you are making a big mistake!" he insisted "Camus sacrificed himself willingly to teach me the seventh sense when I was on the verge of death. He died honorably!"

"You better call your Cloth, coward" she warned "You lying traitor!"

He couldn't reply. A tremendous blast sent him rolling in the snow down the road, leaving a long path in the thick white mantle. The people who saw this hurried to shelter themselves.

She walked to him.

"I better drive her away from town or we could hurt innocent people." He thought.

He was up in a second and leapt over her, heading for the vast empty whiteness, away from the village.

"You cannot escape!" she yelled after him and followed in hot pursuit.

Having reached a safe distance from the village, Hyoga stopped and called his Cloth. His ice cosmos shone intensely as the Cygnus Armor assembled itself over his body.

Ready to fight, he made a last effort to avoid the battle.

"Woman, listen to me, please. My Master Camus and I fought honorably. He sacrificed himself to teach me the seventh sense so I could fight for Athena. I feel a deep sorrow for his death."

Warm tears started to roll down the blond man's cheeks from his sky blue eyes. "I wish things could've been different. His life was precious. It was a terrible loss!"

But Eienai was blinded by rage and pain. She knew Camus was always ready to sacrifice himself if necessary. But, why die at the hands of a simple Bronze Saint? If they were fighting for Athena, why not join forces and fight together for the same cause?

"Don't preach to me about loss. I can see your tears are sincere, but I don't know if you cry over Camu's death or if you repent for killing him in unfair fight. If such is the case, you will pay Camu's death with yours and you will be redeemed. Only your blood will silence my vengeful spirit."

"I will fight fairly with you." He responded "If I die, you will have your revenge. But if I defeat you, and I will, I'll prove that I'm telling the truth!"

"It's a deal." She accepted and attacked "Burning Viper! Aaaaah!"

Hyoga was able to dodge the first blows. Her technique was very similar to his friend's Pegasus Meteor. The attack came as balls of fire.

But to his surprise, the speed increased, like a serpent that attacks with the speed of lightning and he couldn't dodge or block all of them. The blasts burned him like real fire and then they started to set fire to his armor.

He was rolling away in the snow in no time.

Falling in the snow was the only thing that helped cool his armor. Smoke rose from the darkened chestplate. The sleet and freezing winds also cooled him down.

"I don't understand" he said as he got up "You can't burn metal like wood or paper. But you have set fire to my armor."

"Solarium was forged at incredible temperatures." She explained. "I got this armor from inside a volcano. Molten lava doesn't affect it but it can set fire to anything and burn it down."

"I see. Then, all I have to do is smother your fire!" he pushed his cosmos up "Diamond Dust Attack!"

Eienai received the ice attack in all its strength. She was covered by ice until she turned into an ice statue.

The ice Saint ceased his attack and waited. The woman would be eternally trapped, frozen inside the ice coffin.

"I guess the battle is over" he whispered "I'm sorry it had to be this way"

But then he felt a fiery cosmos rising from inside the ice coffin, making it blow in pieces.

"Aren't you listening, boy?" she yelled at him "My fire burns it all! Burning Viper!"

The fire balls rained over him again.

"You cannot attack a Saint with the same trick twice!" he shouted back.

Hyoga dodged and blocked her attack, and as before, she increased her speed. But this time he was prepared and he shot his Diamond Dust against the woman's fists.

Cooling down his opponent, Hyoga made her attack unable to burn him like before, but…

"You are smart, Cygnus Saint" she admitted.

But he was once again taken aback when she easily burned the ice in her fists and her cosmos seemed to double its intensity.

His Bronze armor was set on fire again as she renewed her attack and the blows came so fast that he felt he would soon be consumed entirely by the inextinguishable fire..

Hyoga fell in the snow and it melt around him. Even the icy sleet offered no relief, it evaporated on contact. He tried rolling himself in the snow, but the fire didn't die.

Desperate and tortured, he pushed his ice cosmos to the limit and it was just then that the fire receded and died.

When he stood up, his cosmos shone its pure white light intensely around him.

"How did he extinguished my fire just with his cosmos?" she wondered astonished. Just a cold air like Camus' could do that"

I will demonstrate you now what Master Camus taught me with his life" The Bronze Saint said "Diamont Dust Atack!"

The Lady Saint tried to dodge his power, but it came with a terrible force. It froze her armor, that couldn't keep protecting her body from the cold. She was unable to move when his final blow sent her flying. When she landed back in the snow, head first, she didn't get up.

"Now, do you believe that I'm telling the truth?" he asked.

The young fighter turned to leave, but he heard her calling after him.

"You will have to kill me if you want to defeat me" she said as she warily got up.

Her body was at the point of freezing. Hyoga was sure she couldn't feel her limbs anymore.

His attack should've knocked her unconscious. He couldn't but admire the Lady Saint's determination.

"You must have very strong ties to Camus and Shura, if you are willing to die fighting to avenge their deaths."

Making a great effort to keep her balance, she lifted her head proudly.

"Shura was my dear older brother and Camus… I loved him with all my heart."

The revelation hit him like an iron fist. He lowered his head and spoke sincerely to her:

"I'm and truly sorry that this had to happen. I know what you are going thru. I lost my mother when I was a child and still today, the painful memories haunt me. But she will always be with me, as Shura and Camus will always be with you in your heart. Killing me won't bring them back and your revenge will only lead to more pain."

Hot tears ran under the woman's mask and frosted her mask's chin. The man before her was echoing the same words she had said in her last goodbye to Shura and Camus:

"We will always be together in our hearts."

Hyoga and Eienai faced each other in silence for long seconds. The only sound was the moan of the wind in the vast whiteness.

"There is only one way to go" she said at last "I take your life or you take mine and end my suffering."

He didn't answer. He could feel the torn heart inside her chest. She would never stop.

"This is the last attack I learned from my Master;" He told her, rising his cosmos and preparing his final technique "Camus gave his life to teach it to me: 'Aurora Execution'."

She spread her arms and burned her cosmos to the maximum, preparing for her most powerful attack, 'Solar Crown'.

Both Saints sent their attacks at the same time. Time seemed to drag the seconds.

"Aurora Execution!"

"Solar Crown!"

A golden glow shone before Eienai's eyes and she was unable to see her opponent.

"Camus!" she shouted as she recognized the face before her.

"Stop your attack!" – he heard Camu's ghost-like voice inside her mind.

With great effort, she pulled her attack back, driving it off course. Her terrible power set the snow on fire an opened the ground a few inches away from where Hyoga was standing.

But it was too late for Hyoga to stop. His powerful technique had reached her.

"Camuuuuuuus!" she yelled with all her strength as she was sent away, her body freezing to the bone. She could not feel any pain and death seem to have embraced her in wings of darkness.

Her body hit the white snow like a rock.

The wind is sharp like an ice sword. She moves no more.

Hyoga couldn't believe what had just happened. "She turned her attack away from me in the last second! But, why did she?"

"Hyoga, don't let her die" he heard a voice telling him.

"It's my Master Camus! He is speaking to my cosmos!" he realized.

"Hyoga, you mustn't let her die!" Camu's voice repeated insistently in his mind.

He nodded and ran to her.

Eienai floated in pitch black darkness. There was no up or down, or time or space. Suddenly, a golden glow pierced the blackness and she saw Camus walking to her.

"Eienai, do not seek revenge. Hyoga is telling you the truth." He said softly standing before her with his serene face.

"Camus! It's you! You don't know how I miss you! I cannot keep on living without you and Shura… I love you, Camus. I love you! I want to go with you!"

Camus gazed tenderly at her and he smiled.

"I love you too, my dear Eienai. But you must live. Remember, we will always be together in our hearts… always." Having said this, he started to vanish.

"Camus! Don't go, please! Camus!" she shouted desperately.

But his warm, golden cosmos was gone and the blackness swallowed her once more.

"Please, you have to hold on!" she heard a faint voice telling her.

It was then that the pain came crashing over her entire body. She strained in an effort to endure it. She was dizzy and blind with pain.

She could feel strong hands holding her and she heard the familiar voice again.

"Hold on, please! I know you can do it!"

At last she was able to regain conscious control over her body and see thru her pain.

The fuzzy image before her was vaguely familiar. She imagined seeing a young man with sad blue eyes.

"Camus?" she called in a whimper.

"No. It's me, Hyoga."

Her heart broke again when she focused on his face. Yes, it was the blond Saint, not Camus.

"What happened? Where am I?" she asked weakly.

We are in a room of an inn. You pulled your attack away from me before it could hit me, but I was unable to stop mine. You've been between life and death, barely breathing. It is a real miracle you are still alive." He told her with a weary smile.

"I'm sorry I didn't believe your words." She said "You never lied to me and I was so blinded by my rage and my desire for vengeance that I didn't listened to you. I apologize, Cygnus Hyoga."

He nodded.

"You have been watching over me all this time" she realized "Why do you do it after I tried to kill you?"

"Camus asked me to help you. He truly wants you to live."

Her sadness choked her and her eyes brimmed with tears.

"I know it is painful." He continued "But we have to move on. You have become a great Lady Saint. I am sure Camus and Shura are very proud of you; and will always watch over you from the stars.

She turned to him, her eyes still crying. But she was smiling gratefully at him.

"Thank you, Hyoga."

He returned the smile and couldn't stop himself from saying: "You are so pretty when you smile."

Hearing this, she quickly touched her face and realized that she was not wearing her mask.

"You have seen my face!" she exclaimed, turning to cover her face "this is inexcusable! It is worse than being seen naked!"

"I-I'm sorry! I didn't mean to! I couldn't find your mask in the snow!" – he stammered.

He stood up quickly from the bed she laid in, but a sudden pain made him drop to his knees.

She turned and look at him. His pain was evident. They were both greatly injured by each other's attacks, but he has taken care of her wounds, regardless of his own.

Eienai decided that it doesn't matter anymore if he has seen her face. Hyoga has helped her and now she must help him.

Still in pain Eienai got up and helped him to the bed, letting him lie as she sits next to him.

"My fire can continue burning inside your body, even if you extinguish it on the surface." She told him. "Let me help you"

"No, you are still hurt..." he protested.

"Don't play hero, young boy." She said, pretending to scold him.

Passing her hand a few inches above his body, she slowly drove her cosmos through his wounds and his skin, making the fire stop burning and soothing his pain.

Little by little, he felt the stinging pain going away and a cool energy seeping inside his feverish body. The burning pain that tortured him receeded and quickly died.

"You are quite tough yourself, Hyoga. You will be all right now. The Solarium fire that burned you has died completely." She said.

"Now I'm the one who should thank you." He replied.

She noticed that he had closed his eyes tight and didn't open them. She understood that he did this so he wouldn't see her face again.

The rule when the face of a Lady Saint has been seen by a man, dictates that she must choose between killing the man and loving the man.

"It's all right." She said "I know the rules for a Lady Saint and that you don't want to offend me by seeing my face. But I have always believed that it is a very stupid rule."

He opened his eyes and saw her smiling at him.

"You have saved me, Hyoga. I will not seek to do any harm to you or your friends."

She stood up and turned to leave.

"Wait!" he calls "your wounds!"

"Rest and see after yourself. Don't worry about me, I will live. But you will never see me again."

He tried to make her stay, but she walked slowly for the door.

"You never told me your name, Lady Saint." He said to her before she went out.

Without turning to face him, she answered. "My name is Eienai."

"I wish the most brilliant of stars sheds its light upon your path, Eienai." He whispered to her before she shut the door behind her.

Enduring the great pain of the thousand knives that seemed to pierce her body at every step, Eienai picked up her armor box, and exited the inn covering her face with her hand. The cold only made her feel worse, but she had to go on.

She walked slowly over to the battlefield and searched. Buried under the snow, she found her mask. The cold bit her face as she put it on again.

Soon she was lost in the white horizon. The wind had died down, but the snow keept falling, erasing all traces of the blattle between the two Saints.

"Thank you, Hyoga; our battle has made me realize there are still many things I have to learn. I will return to my Master, he and Galias must be worried about me. Now I know I have to move on and discover my destiny. Thank you too, my dear Camus."

That Bronze Saint had made her realize clearer that ever before that she, Camus and Shura would be forever together in her heart.


End file.
